


Pink Kryptonite Makes You Gay?

by LenaWarriorPrincess



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Buckle up, F/F, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, I Will Go Down With This Ship, Mostly fluff with light angst and a happy ending, Not super slow burn but still, Slow Burn Kara Danvers/Lena Luthor, Worth the ride, You kids ever hear the story of Pink Kryptonite?, it takes them a while, some sanvers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-24
Updated: 2018-05-24
Packaged: 2019-05-13 05:06:12
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 10,149
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14742527
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LenaWarriorPrincess/pseuds/LenaWarriorPrincess
Summary: When J'onn catches Kara daydreaming during a briefing, he tunes into her brainwaves and is surprised to see a Hallmark Channel-worthy montage of Lena Luthor's beautiful face on repeat in Kara's head. Clearly, Supergirl has been infected by the mysterious, dreaded Pink Kryptonite! This calls for action, so J'onn launches a full-scale investigation and ropes Alex into interrogating her sister. But when Kara finally starts opening up, Alex can't tell if Kara's under the influence of a powerful alien substance or Lena Luthor's left eyebrow. Either way, no one's coming out of this one unchanged.Warning: Prepare for a massively stupid and ridiculous premise, heavy flirting in a secret lab, sisterly bonding and tears, Lena Luthor at both her softest and scariest, and one gay mess of a superhero.





	1. “Do you usually just go rooting around in our brains, willy-nilly?”

**Author's Note:**

> Caution: this is a silly, funny, stupid story with weirdly real emotional consequences, which is apparently what happens when I try to be fluffy. A little angst might've slipped in there towards the end, and I apologize for that, but I promise we're getting a happy ending. 
> 
> To start out, though, buckle the hell up for hijinks, misunderstandings, and two beautiful idiots who belong together. 
> 
> My apologies for paying zero attention to the rules of the DC universe, and for completely ignoring the timeline as established by the show writers. I'm just here to have fun, and I hope you are, too. 
> 
> Also, my chapter lengths are wildly uneven, so bear with me as I try to figure this fic writing thing out. Thank you all for your feedback!

Kara Danvers stares dreamily out of one of the many large, bulletproof windows in the DEO briefing room. The mid-morning sun sends a glint off the skyscrapers of National City. A plane streaks a fluffy ivory trail of condensation through the clear blue sky. But Kara is not taking in the scenery. Her mind is back in a coffee shop earlier this morning, replaying in slow-motion the moment her best friend strode through the doorway, the way her dark hair glistened auburn in the early golden light, the way her clean, familiar scent surrounded Kara in a small gust of wind when she gracefully sank into the chair opposite. And that smile that was so ready whenever Kara made a bad pun, no matter how much of a dad joke–

“Kara!” J’onn voice breaks through her reverie. Kara snaps her back back towards the DEO director and the other agents in the briefing, blinking quickly. 

“Sorry, sir.”

“Kara, what was the last thing I said?”

“Um…we’re going to go catch some bad guys? And wear a lot of black?”

J’onn sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose. Kara can’t help but notice as Alex rewards her snark with a small snort. After collecting himself, J’onn continues. “Kara, I need you paying attention during these briefings. You might think that you’re invincible, but we’re not just going after ‘bad guys’ here. Every day we discover more people working as hard as they can to devise new ways of hurting you. If you are unable to behave professionally, we will be forced to leave you behind on future missions in the interest of your own safety. Is this understood?”

Kara stares at the floor and nods slightly. J’onn takes a step toward her. 

“Kara?” he asks, waiting for a better reply. Kara meets his gaze. 

“Yes, sir.” 

“Thank you. Now, as I was saying–“

The rest of the briefing goes smoothly, though Kara can’t shake the prickling embarrassment of being publicly humiliated. It reminds her of a time when one of her friend’s mothers told Eliza that Kara had eaten their family’s entire Christmas cookie supply. The friend’s mom hadn’t been trying to tattle, she was just truly amazed that Kara managed to work through three dozen molasses cookies in one sitting, and was suggesting that perhaps Eliza should take her to see a doctor. Instead, Eliza forced Kara to spend her whole Saturday baking and dragged her over to the friend’s house to apologize to the entire family and replace the missing baked goods. Actually, that day might have been worse than today. J’onn’s disappointed face was nothing compared to Eliza’s. 

Once the meeting ends, Kara practically flies out the door to go busy herself with something, anything. As Alex tries to follow, J’onn grabs her elbow and pulls her back until all the other agents have left. 

“Alex, we need to talk.”

“What is it sir?”

“I’m afraid it’s something of a private matter, one which I hope you will refrain from mentioning to the other agents.”

A look of shock and guilt drains the color from Alex’s face. “Sir, if this is about the thing with the new interrogation room and Maggie, I just want to say that we had no idea that was a one-way mirror, and I promise nothing like that will ever happen ag–“

“Actually, Alex, this is about your sister. But thank you for that mental image. I will be sure to send a decontamination unit to the interrogation room right away.” 

Alex smacks herself in the forehead. “God, I’m so stupid. And so sorry. That was just so unprofessional, and, wait, you said there’s something up with Kara?” 

“I’m not certain of the nature of the situation yet, but I do believe an investigation is in order.” 

Concerned, Alex launches into big-sister mode. “What is it? Did we get word of an invasion? Is there a rogue alien after her? An assassination attempt? What the hell is going on?”

J’onn shakes his head and sighs. “Were it so simple,” he says as he turns from Alex and grabs his tablet from the conference table. “Alex, are you familiar with the effects of Pink Kryptonite?”

Alex fails to stifle a chuckle. “I’m sorry, what?” 

“Pink Kryptonite.” 

“That sounds made-up.” 

“I assure you, it’s not.” 

“What does it do, turn you into a Barbie? Force you to buy a purse chihuhua? Give you superhuman contouring skills?”

“Alex, this is serious.”

“I know, I know. I’m sorry. It’s just… hearing you say the words ‘Pink Kryptonite,’ it’s funny. I’m sorry. I’m being serious. Look how serious I am,” says Alex, adopting an exaggerated version of her stern secret agent face. 

“So, this Pink Kryptonite– ” J’onn shoots Alex a glare as she lets out a small giggle. “It’s very unique in the nature of its effects on Kryptonians. There has only been one case witnessed, so we have very little data on which to base our understanding of it.”

“This one case, it didn’t have anything to do with Kara’s cousin, did it?” 

“As a matter of fact, it did. A few years ago, Superman came into contact with a very small dosage. We are still unsure as to how it found its way into his proximity, but there is no doubt that it produced… strange effects.”

“Strange how? J’onn, we deal with nothing but strange stuff here. Last week, I arrested a purple fish guy who had been breaking into dentists’ offices to steal and eat human teeth. How much stranger can you get?”

“When Superman was under the influence of Pink Kryptonite, some of his, uh, predilections changed.” 

“You’re going to have to be more specific.” 

“You know that he and Lois are in a relationship, yes?” 

“Yup.”

“Well, during the incident, he no longer found himself attracted to her in the same way.” 

Alex snorted. “It zapped his sex-drive? You know, they make a pill for that.”

“Not for this, they don’t. It wasn’t just that he was uninterested in Lois. He found himself attracted to another _gender_ entirely.” 

“Ohh.”

“Yes.” 

“Pink Kryptonite makes you gay.”

“I suppose you could put it in those terms.” 

“Well, that’s just hilarious. I am so bringing this up at our next family barbecue.”

“No, you will not.” 

“Excuse me?”

“Alex, in case you’ve forgotten, we’re here because of your sister’s safety.”

“Oh, right! Sorry, I just– wait, you think Kara’s _gay_?”

“Previously, I did not, but the sudden change in that regard is the cause for concern.”

“J’onn, Kara’s not gay. I’m her sister. I’m a lesbian. I’m kind of an expert in every relevant field here.”

J’onn sighs again and looks wearily at Alex. “It never ceases to amaze me that one of the top intelligence agents in the world is somehow utterly unable to remember for more than a day that her director is a mind reader.” 

Alex sucks air through gritted teeth. “Ah, right. That. I remember your little psychic tendencies ruining the big reveal when I tried to surprise you with my girlfriend.”

J’onn nods. Alex jerks her head up and stares at J’onn with a mixture of horror and curiosity. “Oh. OH. Oh, no.” 

“Yes.” 

“You saw something. In her head.” 

“I did.” 

“Do you usually just go rooting around in our brains, willy-nilly?”

“No, this was an exception. I was concerned that she wasn’t paying attention during our briefing, and decided to find out what exactly was so distracting. I thought perhaps it might have been something we could deal with, get out of the way, so she could focus. But it turned out to be a very different set of images than I was expecting.”

Alex whistles softly and takes all this in for a beat. “I really don’t want to ask this, but isn’t that enough proof of Pink Kryptonite right there? You can’t exactly enter a tape in the evidence room, but when have we ever done things by the books?”

“It’s not that simple.”

“How so?”

“Well, the mental images I stumbled across were… illuminating, but not definite.”

“Could you be a little more cryptic?”

“I’ll put it this way. Everything was G-rated. But cast in a, well, confusing light.” 

“A _gay_ light.” 

“Yes.”

“So, now what? Where do we go from here?”

“I want you to glean as much information from your sister as you can, while doing absolutely nothing to arouse suspicion. You are her sister, so I presume that episodes of emotional outpouring are typical in your relationship?” 

“Well, yeah, but geez, they’re a lot more fun that you make them sound. So, I bribe her ice cream and pizza and get her to open up?” J’onn nods. “And if she says or does anything gay, I report back to you?” J’onn nods again. “Just one more thing before we get this ball rolling. Are there any other effects I should know about?”

“None that I’m aware of.” 

“So, answer me this: if she’s gayer than usual, and she’s happy and there are no negative effects on her physically, why do we need to ‘fix’ her? I mean, I’m a little biased here, but I get cagey anytime someone brings up the idea of a cure for gayness. It seems like a slippery slope.”

J’onn puts a reassuring hand on Alex’s shoulder and gives her a soft look. 

“Alex, you know that I love both you and your sister, exactly as you are. If Kara truly were gay, I would celebrate it just as I have with you. But if there’s Pink Kryptonite out there, and Kara came into contact with it, that means that someone has the technology to produce artificial Kryptonite. Not just the pink variety.”

“Oh. I understand. And thanks for the emotional outpouring, I know how much you enjoy those. But if someone could infect Supergirl with any kind of Kryptonite, why go with pink? Why not launch with one of the more lethal strains?” 

“I don’t know. My best guess is that they are either testing the efficacy of their product before attempting a more drastic attack, or they have a reason to want to alter Supergirl’s… orientation.”

“What kind of sicko would do something like that?” Alex mutters, mostly to herself.

“I wish I had an answer. For now, all we can do is investigate.”


	2. “What’s a mad scientist without a secret lab?”

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kara drops by L-Corp for lunch, and Lena tries to keep her eyebrow in check.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So it just occurred to me that if any of you out there are trying to figure out exactly when this thing is happening, you're going to be confused. For your own sanity, don't even try. I'm pretty sure Kara's still working at CatCo, and Cat Grant is most likely gone, but Lena's not in charge there because I thought was kind of a dumb move on the writers' part to begin with. Plus, boss/employee relationships are always a little squicky to me. So, again, sorry for just crapping all over the canon timeline, but I'm the captain now.

In the main control room of the DEO, Kara paces back and forth, a crinkle between her eyebrows. She’s muttering to herself and fidgeting with a shiny metal box that appears to do little more than flash colored lights. On one particularly strident heel turn, she hears a shattering noise and looks down to see metal shards at her feet. Winn appears out of nowhere, whimpering slightly at the sight of the broken technology. “Geez, Kara, you can’t keep breaking DEO property every time you feel like brooding. I’m pretty sure we can afford one of those stress squeeze-y things with the eyes that pop out. Want me to put in an order? ” 

“That’s okay. Sorry, Winn. I don’t know what’s up with me.”

“I heard about your little talking-to from Space Dad.” Kara raises an eyebrow. Winn shrugs. “What, that’s what we call him, right? Or is that just me?” 

“Actually, I kinda like it. But Space Dad probably wouldn’t.”

“Yeah, and then he’d give you another one of those not-mad-just-disappointed looks.”

“Ugh,” Kara groans. “Why can’t I just have a boss I can straight-up hate, like everyone else? Why do I have to care so much about what he thinks of me?” 

“I dunno, but I’d still take a J’onn over Cat Grant any day.” 

“Hey, Cat was cool!” 

“Maybe to you! She called me a Hobbit.” 

“Ok, so maybe she could be a little mean. But actually, you just reminded me that I’ve got a lunch across town I gotta get to, so if you’ll excuse me–” Before Winn can respond, Kara’s already gone. He kneels down to pick up the pulverized remains of the device. 

“I’m not even that short,” he grumbles. 

. . . . . 

In her L-Corp office, Lena is in full-scientist mode. She’s poring over the designs for several new projects, itching to see them come into being. Part of her wants to change into a lab coat and get to work on them, but she reminds herself that business comes first, and mad scientist business comes second. The corner of her mouth twitches at her own joke. She _would_ make a formidable mad scientist, but honestly, that would be too prosaic, especially considering her family. No, she’s more interested in curing diseases, improving water quality, creating more efficient solar cells, the kind of research that would bore a true mad scientist to death. 

Lena sits back in her chair and stretches some of the tension out of her shoulders. She glances at the clock, alarmed at how quickly the morning evaporated. It seems like just a half hour ago that she was in that coffee shop with her favorite reporter, listening to her ramble about what kind of dog she would be (a golden retriever, obviously), the best Disney channel original movies (apparently Camp Rock is unquestionably superior to High School Musical), the secret to the perfect cup of cocoa (just plopping in half a Hershey’s bar and a couple drops of peppermint flavoring). But throughout the whole conversation, Lena kept getting distracted. She’d noticed an errant strand of blonde hair falling out of Kara’s ponytail and glinting in the morning light like spun gold. She’d felt her stomach flip when Kara fidgeted with her glasses and gave her a bashful smile every time she complimented her. She’d frozen and forgotten how to speak for a moment when in a particularly exuberant moment, Kara reached out and put a hand on hers. Hours later, Lena flexes her hand and wonders how it can still be tingling with that warmth only Kara can exude. 

“Miss Luthor, your one o’clock is here.” Lena snaps herself out of her reverie. 

“Thank you, Jess. Please send her in.” 

Before Lena has enough time to fully collect herself, Kara’s already in the room, two bags of Noonan’s takeout in outstretched hands. 

“I brought food!” she declares, grinning. Inwardly, Kara beats herself up for making such a dumb entrance. Why was she always like this around Lena? Why couldn’t she just channel some of that cool, Supergirl energy for once?

Lena smiles, pushing away from her desk and striding over to Kara.  
“My hero,” she says wryly, and smirks as Kara blushes, hands too full for her to cover her awkwardness with the usual glasses adjustment. After what feels like an excruciating eternity to her, Kara manages a response.

“I figured we could eat here, since I know I already wasted a bunch of your time today, and– ”

“Kara, to me, you’re never a waste of time,” says Lena in a tone that’s equal parts flirtatious and serious. Lena carefully takes one of the bags, her hand covering Kara’s for the fraction of a second it takes to find the handle. Kara blinks as she tries to figure out why the innocent statement seems to be raising her blood pressure. 

As Lena watches the poor girl struggle against another blush, she thinks to herself that she should probably tone it down. Maybe it’s harmless, but Lena feels a little guilty for making Kara uncomfortable. After all, they are just friends. Even if Lena ever did get some unquestionable kind of reciprocation, she’s spent enough time around straight girls to understand that it still might not mean anything. Flirting is just a fun pastime. Everyone knows that. 

Finally, Kara breaks through Lena’s musings. 

“Um, should I just set this down…?” She gestures to the coffee table. 

“If you don’t mi– ” An idea seizes Lena. “Actually, why don’t we try something new?” she asks, the eyebrow lifting with a mind of its own. _God damnit, Lena, keep it in check for more than ten seconds._

“Something new?” asks Kara, smiling innocently. “Like what?” 

“Well, if you’re up for a little adventure, and you’re willing to keep a secret, there’s something I’d like to show you.” _Jesus Christ, Lena, do you hear yourself? We need to work on your phrasing._ Lena straightens up slightly and adopts a more professional tone. “You’re aware of my mad scientist reputation, yes?” 

Kara frowns, that adorable little crease appearing between her brows. “Oh, Lena, you know I don’t think of you like that. You’re not like your family, you’re good, you’re really good, and smart, and cari–” Lena cuts her off with a wave of her hand. 

“But for the sake of argument, you know what I’m talking about?” 

Kara sighs. “For the sake of argument, yes.” 

“Well, what’s a mad scientist without a secret lab?” asks Lena, smiling wickedly, eyebrow once again in the air.

. . . . .

Kara can hardly contain herself. She hasn’t been this overwhelmed by coolness since her first trip to the DEO. Playing spy is always fun, but a secret elevator behind a bookcase leading to a subterranean lab? It just doesn’t get any cooler than that. 

Lena can’t help but smirk at the look of awe on Kara’s face. Privately, she’s always wanted to have someone to show this off to. Perhaps the bookcase elevator was a bit much, but Kara didn’t seem to think so. Standing so near to her in the elevator, Lena’s unsure whether it’s the rapid descent or the close quarters that’s making her stomach flip. Either way, she’s relieved when the trip is soon over, and leads the way into her private lab. 

“So, as you can see, it’s not huge. It’s really just a little workroom for me to escape to when I want to feel like I’m actually _doing something_ again.” Lena’s modesty is a little ridiculous, considering the reality of her lab. For some reason, Kara expected it to be dark and drippy, like something from an _Alien_ movie, but it’s all bright white, black granite and stainless steel. The edges of the room are bordered with black counters and sleek white cupboards for storing chemicals and supplies. The center is a large island made of the same granite countertop, with a sloping sink in the middle. Several Bunson burners are planted along the counters, which also house a variety of test tubes, flasks, and strange containers of mysterious substances, some of which are glowing. 

Lena sighs and looks lovingly around her domain. “Down here, it’s just me, my projects, and my secret army of clones.” 

Kara looks stunned for a moment before catching the humor lurking beneath Lena’s deadpan expression. “You’re kidding, right?” she asks, only mostly sure. 

“What, you don’t want to see a dozen Lena Luthors wandering around down here? Actually, don’t answer that. No, as you so kindly said, I’m not _that_ mad of a scientist.”

Kara chuckles, partly from relief. She trusts Lena, she really does, and she knows she’d never do anything evil, but maybe her idea of what might be questionable could be a little skewed? 

“Kara, would you like to see what I’m working on?” Kara nods, setting down the food bags on a countertop before venturing further into the lab towards Lena. “Right now, my main area of focus is renewable energy. Specifically, I’m trying to come up with a more efficient photovoltaic cell. It’s utterly ridiculous that we’re still dependent on fossil fuel, don’t you think?” 

“Absolutely,” agrees Kara readily. She breathes more easily, reassured that her friend is not, in fact, up to any shenanigans. _Ha. Shenanigans. That’s a funny word._ She moves closer as Lena gestures to a pile of scattered blueprints and a microscope. 

“This is all I have so far. I think I left a fragment on the– let me check– ” Lena settles onto the stool in front of the microscope. Kara watches as Lena sweeps her long ponytail behind her shoulder and stares intently into the eyepiece. When Lena’s teeth snag her bottom lip in concentration, Kara fights a bizarre urge to squirm. “Ah! I thought so!” says Lena and turns back to Kara with a dazzling smile. “Want to take a look?”

Kara simply nods excitedly and steps forward as Lena slides off the stool so she can take her place. Lena gently places her hands on either side of Kara’s head and helps her find the perfect angle. Through the microscope, Kara sees a minuscule configuration of metallic geometric shapes. Lena slides her hands down to rest on Kara’s shoulders. Kara feels a trail of tingles where Lena’s fingers brushed against her neck. She tries to ignore the contact, the closeness of Lena, the warmth of her body barely touching Kara’s back. She silently thanks Rao that unlike her, Lena can’t hear heartbeats, and desperately hopes she also doesn’t notice the way goosebumps are creeping over her skin. 

“I know it doesn’t look like much, but that tiny clump of microstructures could be the future of solar energy,” says Lena without a hint of arrogance. Her voice, barely more than a murmur, is startlingly close to Kara’s ear. Kara swallows hard. 

“I’ll admit, I don’t really know what I’m looking at, but I trust you.”

“You have no idea how much that means to me.” They both know they’re not talking about solar cells, and the silence that follows is not awkward, but weighted. Suddenly, remembering herself, Lena pulls away and says, a little too brightly, “If I recall, I didn’t just ask you down here for show-and-tell. The future can wait. Let’s see what’s for lunch, shall we?” 

Kara smiles, matching Lena’s energy as she gets up and brings the bags over to unpack their makeshift picnic at the center island. She tries to act normal, and then tries not to think about why she’s having to _try_ to act normal in the first place. 

“So, I brought three different kinds of pasta, a salad since I know you’re one of those crazy salad people, and a couple containers of that really good pumpkin bisque you liked so much last time.” 

“If this were a date with anyone but you, I’d say you brought too much, but– no, I didn’t mean a date like _that_ , just that– ”

Kara interrupts her with a laugh. “Lena, I know what you meant. It’s a friend date. I love friend dates! They’re so much less… complicated, you know?” 

“I know exactly what you mean,” Lena agrees. _Right. Less complicated. Hah. This little luncheon party makes String Theory seem like Physics 101._ “So,” continues Lena briskly, “What’s new with Kara Danvers?”

“Since this morning? Not much.” Kara opens a container of spaghetti and smiles as she breathes in the steam. Lena cracks the lid on her salad and spears a cherry tomato with a plastic fork. Suddenly, Kara remembers something. “Oh, I got in trouble!” Kara’s proud smile doesn’t match her words. 

“Really?” asks Lena, raising an eyebrow and smirking. “ _The_ Kara Danvers got in _trouble_?” _Check yourself, Lena._

Kara giggles lightly and twirls spaghetti around her fork. 

“You know, Lena, I’m not as much of a Girl Scout as you think.” When Kara meets her gaze and holds it for a loaded moment, Lena pauses, fork half-raised, a flirty quip on the tip of her tongue. _Am I actually crazy, or was that flirting? Well, fuck it._

“I’d like to see empirical evidence of that myself.” She pops the tomato in her mouth.

“Just ask my boss. I wasn’t paying attention during a staff meeting, so I got a talking-to. In front of all my coworkers. And, I actually gave him some sass. So, think what you will, but I’m no saint.” This time, Lena can’t possibly be mistaken by the not-so-innocent look being shot at her across the counter. _Interesting._

“Well, any time you’d like to prove your not-sainthood to me, I’d love to see it in action. Frankly, I still find it a little hard to picture.” Kara giggles again, a blush creeping up from under her collar. Lena studies her while Kara’s eyes are still fixed on her pasta. _Very interesting._


	3. “Mmmmph murff meeeeeeephy.”

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alex explains the plan to Maggie, and together they struggle to get Kara to be honest with herself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sanvers is here! God, I miss them. Oof. 
> 
> Also, if any of you Mulder/Scully Romance shippers are out there, keep an eye out for a reference!

“He said _what_?!” Maggie stands behind to the kitchen counter, a beer in each hand, awaiting an explanation from her girlfriend.

“According to J’onn, Kara’s exhibiting some… not-straight tendencies.” 

“And this– I’m sorry, it’s just so funny– this _Pink Kryptonite_ is what’s causing all this?” 

Alex pulls a beer from Maggie’s hand and takes a long swallow before responding. “Yup. That’s his hypothesis. Somewhere, somehow, she must’ve come into contact with some of this pink crap, and BAM! Gay.” 

Maggie considers this a moment, mouth agape. She shakes her head. 

“And has he considered the possibility that Little Danvers might just take after her sister?”

“Yeah, well, with that whole Charles Xavier thing he’s got going on, it turns out he has some kind of a track record of our usual thought patterns.” 

“Well, that’s fucking creepy.”

“You’re telling me.” 

“If my boss knew what I was thinking, I would have been fired the first time he showed up to work wearing a fedora. Hell, I’d probably be in jail.” 

“A fedora? There’s not a jury in the country that would convict you.”

Maggie snickers and the couple walks over to Kara’s couch, simultaneously sinking into it and sighing. Maggie continues. “So, up until now, Kara’s never pinged J’onn’s gaydar.” 

“Right.” 

“I can’t say the same for me,” says Maggie into her beer.

_“What?”_

“Look, I’m not saying I’m positive, but it doesn’t take a psychic to notice the way Kara looks– no, _gazes_ – at that CEO buddy of hers.”

“She does not _gaze_ at Lena.” 

“Yes, she does. I mean, I can’t say I blame her. That woman’s got some kind of thing going on, with the cheekbones, and the eyebrows, and she can really fill out a– _Ow_!” Maggie rubs her shoulder where Alex punched her. “You sure Kara’s not the only one in the family with super strength?” 

“Yes. But now, I’m not so sure I’m the only lesbian,” admits Alex reluctantly. 

“So you agree! Hah!” Maggie grins triumphantly. 

“I don’t agree, and I didn’t even begin to consider it until about ten seconds ago, but now that you mention it, they do spend an awful lot of time together.” 

“They do,” says Maggie with a knowing smile.

“And Kara never shuts up about her. I mean, I love my sister, but if I have to hear that sickeningly sweet ‘Lena is so good, so pure, so smart’ speech one more time, I think I’m going to need a shot of insulin.” 

“She’s got it bad, Danvers,” says Maggie with a sigh. “The girl is in love.”

“If only I knew what that felt like,” muses Alex wistfully. “ _Ow_!” Maggie kisses Alex’s shoulder where her smack was reciprocated, and smiles devilishly up at her girlfriend, whose own smile is a perfect reflection. Maggie slowly works her way up Alex’s neck, planting small kisses, until Alex says “Wait!”

“What?”

“We need a course of action. Kara will be home any minute now, and we need to come up with an interrogation plan.”

“I’m assuming we can’t resort to the usual dark room, bright light, good cop, bad cop routine?”

“I’m afraid not. Although, later on, I wouldn’t mind seeing that bad cop– ” 

“Alex, we were focusing.”

“Right, right. Okay, so, today Kara met with Lena for breakfast and lunch– ”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, breakfast _and_ lunch? Two dates in one day? That’s some honeymoon level clinginess right there. This bitches ain’t straight. Well, maybe one’s under the influence of pink alien bullshit, but– Oh, no.”

“What?”

“Oh crap. I think we can all agree that Lena Luthor is not straight.” Alex nods in agreement. “But, what if she’s really into Kara? Like, _really_ into her?”

“But Kara’s only into her because of the Kryptonite. So maybe all this time, Lena’s been waiting for a sign, and now she’s finally gotten it, but as soon as Kara gets ‘better’… ”

“It’s over. Maybe. I don’t know. I mean, it’s hard to remember when I first noticed the gazing, but I think there’s still a chance Kara’s not as straight as she thought.” 

“Believe me, Maggie, I want that to be true for a whole bunch of reasons, namely so that it turns out no asshole is making Kryptonite and targeting my sister. But this kind of shit has happened more times than I can count, and I can’t relax until I know she’s safe. Well, as safe as she ever is.” Alex frowns, and Maggie gently strokes a thumb across her forehead.

“You’re sweet. But for now, all we have to do is put our gaydars on high alert and see if her Kinsey number shifted overnight.”

“Right. And then report back to J’onn as soon as we know anything.”

“It sounds so simple when you put it like that. But I can already tell this is going to suck.”

Alex gets up. 

“I’m getting more beer.”

. . . . 

“You guys better have pizza, and I mean real pizza, not that cardboard stuff Maggie pretends she likes,” says Kara as she enters the apartment.

“And good evening to you, too, dear sister,” answers Alex with a meek smile, walking over and booping Kara on the nose. 

“Ugh, sorry, I didn’t mean to be rude. It’s just…” 

From the couch, Maggie finishes her thought. “Long day?”

Kara tosses her bag and coat on the floor, kicks off her shoes, and slumps into the couch next to Maggie with a groan. “You have no idea.” 

Alex gathers up various take-out boxes from the kitchen and dumps them onto the coffee table. Maggie reaches for a slice of vegan pizza, ignoring Kara’s disgusted grimace, and asks, “It’s Saturday, didn’t you just have super stuff to do?”

Kara sighs. 

“Yeah, that wasn’t the hard part. I mean, getting called out by J’onn was rough. But that’s not really what’s bothering me.”

“No?”

“No, it’s just that I, uh, hung out with Lena a couple times,” Kara mutters as she reaches for pizza, stacking three slices on top of each other. Maggie and Alex exchange looks. 

Alex waits for more, before finally asking, “And? I thought you two were friends.” 

“And, I dunno, things are just weird. I mean, not weird. Like, they’re not _bad_ weird, just… weird. And I guess kinda bad.” Kara focuses intently on her pizza. 

Maggie snorts. “Boy, with a vocabulary like that, it’s a wonder you haven’t gotten your Pulitzer yet.” 

“Hey, be nice,” warns Alex. 

Maggie rolls her eyes. “Sorry, Little Danvers. It’s just that we can’t really help if you don’t elaborate a teensy bit. Did you guys fight or something?” 

Kara snaps her head toward Maggie, a horrified look on her face. 

“No! Gosh, no. We never fight.” When she turns back to focus on her pizza again, Maggie risks a another knowing look at Alex, who’s making a gagging gesture. 

Alex keeps the interrogation going. 

“Ok, ok, so you guys don’t fight. That’s great. Then, why wasn’t today great?”

Kara groans, drops her pizza back in the box, and buries in her face in the back of the couch. 

_“Mmmmph murff meeeeeeephy.”_

“You want to try that again, in English?” Alex places a hand on her sister’s shoulder, gently prying her from the fabric. 

“I said… she’s, um, she’s so… _pretty_.” Kara barely chokes the words out, her face beet red, before WHUMP, her head’s buried in the couch again. 

Across her back, Alex shoots Maggie an exasperated look. Maggie points a finger at Kara and silently mouths “ _GAY_.” Alex rolls her eyes, shrugs and continues. 

“Honey, why is that a problem?” After a few silent moments, Kara finally reemerges from her refuge. 

“She’s really pretty, and I don’t know what to do about it.” 

“You could ask her to wear a mask,” offers Maggie. Alex ignores her and keeps pressing Kara. 

“Kara, no offense, but what does that mean?” 

Kara stares at her hands, her ears still bright pink. 

“It’s like, I’m her friend, and I love that, I love being her friend, it’s the best thing in the world. I wouldn’t give it up for anything. But sometimes she’s just, I dunno, kind of a _lot_ , you know what I mean?” Kara looks between the two women for confirmation.

“She’s a whole lotta woman,” says Maggie with a smirk. To their utter shock, Kara agrees.

“She is. It’s just kind of overwhelming to be around sometimes. I wish we could all just be, like, giant purple blob things, and we’d all look the same, and we’d only know each other by our personalities, and then it would be easy to be friends with everyone because we wouldn’t get distracted all the time.” 

“You seriously wish Lena was a giant purple blob?” Alex counters, raising an eyebrow. 

“ _Yes_! _No_! I don’t _know_!” Kara thrusts her face back into the couch. 

“Honey, it’s okay to appreciate attractive women. You shouldn’t feel wrong, or bad, or guilty about it. You hear me?” Alex taps gently on Kara’s head when an answer doesn’t come.

_“Mmmm mawf mmayy.”_

“Use your words.” With great effort, the Girl of Steel pulls her face from the couch again and sits up. After a long pause, she tries again. 

“I’m not gay,” she says in a small voice.

“I didn’t say you were.” 

“But you were thinking it. I know what you’re trying to do. You’re trying to make me feel better, when there’s nothing to feel better about.” 

“Tell that to the couch,” says Maggie, before sighing and scooting closer to Kara. “Sorry, Little Danvers, it’s just, you know there’s more than gay and straight, right? It’s not a binary thing. And just liking one woman doesn’t mean to have to take on some label and buy a bunch of rainbow crap. But just because you don’t understand what you’re feeling, doesn’t mean you should hate yourself or try to stop yourself from feeling it.” 

Alex blinks, before saying, “It kills me to say this, but Dr. Phil over there is right. Repression is never healthy.”

“I’m not repressing anything,” argues Kara weakly. 

“Right,” scoffs Alex. “And I just haven’t found the right guy yet.

Kara chuckles softly, but before she realizes what’s happening, she’s suddenly sniffling and hot tears are blurring her vision. They spill down her cheeks and the relief that’s flooding through her only spurs more tears. She slumps into Alex, as Maggie jumps up and calls over her shoulder, “I’m getting tissues.” When Maggie returns, plunking the box in Kara’s lap, Alex is stroking Kara’s hair and holding her. 

After a few minutes, Kara’s quiet sobs slow down and her breathing returns to normal. The sound of Alex’s heartbeat gives her an anchor to cling to. She starts to feel in control of herself again, if a bit waterlogged. 

“I’m an idiot,” she finally chokes out in a tight voice. 

“No, you’re not.” 

“Yes, I am. I’m an idiot now, but I’ve been an idiot for so, so long. Alex, how did I not realize what I was feeling? I’m great at feelings. I _love_ feelings.”

“Well, other people’s feelings, sure, Kar-bear. You’ve got a giant, squishy heart and you care so much about everyone around you all the time. That’s one of the things that makes you, _you_. It’s wonderful. But you spend so much time taking care of your friends, your family, your city, hell, your _planet_ , that it’s not exactly surprising that you’ve been ignoring yourself.”

Kara manages a wobbly smile. “You’re the best sister in the universe, you know that?” Alex smiles back, and Kara reaches over and pulls Maggie into the hug pile. “And you’re the best sister’s girlfriend in the universe. Ok, that sounded better in my head. But it’s true.” 

The three women sit for a few minutes, recovering from the emotional rollercoaster Kara has dragged them on. Alex is the first one to break the silence. 

“Kara, can I ask you something?”

“Of course you can.”

“Honey, if you could go back to the way things were, before you started feeling, well, _feelings_ for Lena, would you want to?” 

Kara sits up with a jerk and turns to her sister. 

“ _Rao_ , no!” 

“Really? Even though things are awkward now, and you’re still not really comfortable with everything?”

“Alex, I know this sounds crazy, and I know it’s making me miserable, but… it’s just so much _more_ now, you know? Like, I always loved being around Lena, but this is a whole new level. It’s like an addiction or something. That’s probably not very romantic, but that’s how it feels. Like today, for instance, the second I woke up all I could think about was how I was going to see Lena at breakfast. I jumped, I literally _jumped_ out of bed. And then when breakfast was over and I had to go back to the DEO, I was counting the minutes until I could get away and see her again at lunch. And then, when I got to see her again, and she was so nice and so– _everything_ , and she actually trusted me enough to show me her secret lab and– ”

Alex grabs Kara’s hand. 

“Her _what_?” 

“Her secret lab?” Kara offers sheepishly. 

“Hoo, boy,” sighs Maggie as she takes a swig of beer. “This should be good.” 

“Kara, are you telling me Lena has a secret lab under L-Corp?” 

“Well, yeah, but it’s not like it sounds! It’s not mad scientist-y at all. I mean, she did joke about having a clone army,” Kara momentarily loses her train of thought, chuckling at the memory. Alex’s impatient shove brings her back. “But she was joking! Gosh, how many times do I have to tell you she’s not like her family? I know she’s a Luthor, I know she looks intimidating and she could probably benefit from de-villaining her wardrobe little, but she’s a good person! She’s working on solar energy technology down there, with no help, for no reason other than she wants to make the future a better place.”

Alex groans. Maggie pats her arm. “Shall I get the insulin, dear?” 

Returning to Kara, Alex continues. 

“Kara, you are the sweetest person I know. And you always see the best in people.” 

“Why do I feel a ‘but’ coming?” 

Maggie snickers, and Alex rolls her eyes. 

“ _But_ , being an optimist is a double edged sword. Maybe you’re not seeing the whole truth about Lena, because you’re too distracted by looking for all her good qualities.” 

“And some other qualities, if you know wh– _HEY_!” Maggie tosses the pillow back at Alex, then shrugs. “I mean, I have a point. Love is blind, and all.” 

Kara turns to Maggie, her voice sardonic. “I don’t _love_ her.” 

“Sure ya don’t, kiddo. That’s why you spend every waking moment thinking about her, lose your ability to speak whoever she does the eyebrow thing– oh, don’t pretend you don’t know what I’m talking about– and never shut up about what a god damn amazing freaking person she is.” 

For a moment, there’s only silence. Kara swallows hard.

“Oh, Rao. I think I might love her.” 

“And I think I might die of an exploded bladder if I don’t go pee right now,” says Alex, standing up. “You got this, Maggie?” Maggie flashes her an OK sign and a wink. 

In the bathroom, Alex shoots a text to J’onn. There’s no making phone calls when your nosy little sister has superhearing, even if she’s a bit distracted at the moment. 

**J’onn, I think you might be right. I can’t be sure. Maggie and I are doing our best. We got her to open up, and sure thing, she’s got it bad for Luthor. So bad, she followed her down into the secret lab under L-Corp that we somehow didn’t know about. How is that possible? Anyway, according to Kara, they had a lovely picnic and geeked out over solar panels, and god I hope that’s all that happened. But a Luthor, a secret lab, and a Super acting weird? Am I wrong for worrying about this?**

After about thirty seconds, she gets a reply.

**Alex, you’re not wrong. Good job trusting your instincts. This is far more information than we were expecting. Bring Kara to headquarters immediately. Our team has devised a Pink Kryptonite test based on the trace samples from Superman’s incident, and we need to get Kara checked. I’ve ordered a raid on L-Corp and have asked our agents to escort Lena here as quickly as possible. We can’t risk her working on Kryptonite for another second. I trust you understand why this is necessary.**

Alex sighs and run a hand through her hair. This is bad. This is so, so bad. There’s no way her sister’s coming out of this without hating her. Alex deserves it, too. She’ll try to explain that it was all about Kara’s safety, that she couldn’t run the risk of someone messing with her, no matter what. But this could all be for nothing. And it’s just so personal. Coming out can be traumatizing, Alex understands that better than anybody, but this is literally the worst possible way it could happen to Kara. Kara, who might be straight, who might not, who might be under the influence of a dangerous chemical, who might just be under the influence of Lena Luthor’s left eyebrow. This is not going to end well.


	4. “I’m going to take a wild guess and presume… Kryptonite.”

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everything hits the fan, and it's not pretty, but stay tuned for a happy ending!

Even without her turning on her superhearing, Kara can’t help but notice Lena’s protests all the way down the hall. Kara’s standing in the briefing room for the second time today, wondering what the heck is going on. Alex was absolutely unhelpful. According to her, J’onn discovered some kind of substance that might have infected her, so Kara had to get to the DEO to be tested immediately. It was such an emergency that she barely had time to change before she and Alex were flying at top speed towards headquarters. 

As soon as she landed, agents dragged her toward the lab, plucking a strand of her hair before forcing her into a decontamination shower. When she came back out, soaking wet and very confused, she found a freshly washed supersuit and a towel folded neatly on a table. After suiting up, she shook her head at superhuman speed to get out most of the water, then finished up by glancing just the right amount of heat vision off the mirror and through her hair. Steam rose around her as hair fluffed up to Supergirl volume, and she took one last glance to make sure she looked the part. 

Now she's nervous again. She feels more confident in her suit, but there are far too many unanswered questions for her to relax. Suddenly, Lena’s striding into the room, surrounded by agents. 

“Good evening, Alex,” she says coolly. “No need to worry, your boys in black gave me quite the thorough pat down.” Lena turns to Kara. “And nice to see you again, Supergirl. It’s been a while, hasn’t it?” 

“Too long, Miss Luthor,” says Kara, with what she hopes is a confident, not-Kara Danvers-y smile. 

J’onn enters, alone. He dismisses the agents flanking Lena and the faction surrounding Kara, and they reluctantly shuffle out, until it’s just Lena, Alex, Kara, and J’onn. 

“Director,” starts Lena, “would you be so kind as to explain why I was awoken in the middle of the night by a frantic call from my security team informing me that my company was being raided by the FBI, only to be handcuffed and flown to the DEO like a dangerous fugitive? For some silly reason, I thought we had agreed to work together.” 

“Miss Luthor, we always appreciate your cooperation, but at the moment, we are dealing with a situation with Supergirl that may involve yourself.” 

“Really? Would you care to tell me what kind of situation?”

“We’re awaiting the results of the investigation of your property before we release those details.” 

“Ah, I see. Well, since it’s likely we’re all going to be here a while, would you mind if I made a few of my own guesses?” 

“I cannot stop you from doing so.” 

“Good,” said Lena, smiling coldly. She slowly circles the conference table before taking a seat at the head, gesturing to the others to sit down. Kara looks to Alex for direction, who only shrugs and starts towards a chair. J’onn takes a seat at the opposite end from Lena, sitting back with his arms crossed. As Kara and Alex pull up chairs at a safe distance from the CEO’s glare, Lena leans forward on her elbows. “Thank you.” Kara shudders. This is Lena’s natural environment. She has the home-court advantage. This is not going to be pretty. 

“Director, I know this organization operates somewhat adjacent to the law,” says Lena, pausing to let the understatement land, “But it seems to me that you’re the type of person who believes in following some kind of protocol.” 

“Correct.” 

“So, I find it hard to believe that you would issue a raid on a billion dollar company and risk losing my alliance without some very convincing probable cause.”

“Of course. We received intel that led us to believe that your facility required investigation.” 

“I think what you _meant_ to say, is that Kara Danvers slipped and told her secret agent sister about my little basement laboratory, and you naturally jumped to the conclusion that I’m cooking up something Luthor-y down there.” Kara flinches at the accusation. Alex launches into overprotective big-sister mode.

“Kara had nothing to do with this!” she hisses, smacking a hand on the table for emphasis. 

“Oh, really? Then, please, explain to me how you learned about my lab, when Kara is the only other person on the planet aware of its existence?” 

Alex gulps and settles back into her chair. She has no answer. There’s no winning with this woman. 

Lena continues. “So, what am I supposed to be working on in my mad scientist lair? What could I possibly create that could hurt the Girl of Steel? I’m going to take a wild guess and presume… Kryptonite.” When no one responds, Lena nods. “Right. So, apparently, I’ve been synthesizing Kryptonite. Let’s just go with that for the moment. But where does Supergirl come into all of this?” 

Reluctantly, Alex responds. “Today, we discovered reason to believe that Supergirl has been infected by some kind of agent in the past week or so.”

Lena gives another terrifying smile, and Alex knows she somehow showed her hand. 

“I’m afraid that’s quite impossible, because until a few minutes ago, I hadn’t seen Supergirl in over three weeks. I assumed she was busy helping old ladies cross the street and cutting ribbons with oversized scissors, but perhaps she flew into the arms of another mad scientist.” 

Kara flinches again. _Rao, she can be mean when she wants to. And the double-entendre was absolutely uncalled for._

Alex bristles again. “How do we know you didn’t give the dirty work of infecting Supergirl to one of your employees?” 

“I think the word you’re looking for is _minions_. And I suppose you can’t know that for certain. But there is one entrance in and out of my lab, and there are security tapes accounting for every second since the chamber’s construction. If you review them, I’m sure you will be satisfied by the distinct lack of nefarious activity. In fact, the only other person you will see on those tapes if your own sister. And last time I checked, she and Supergirl are friends. You are still on good terms, yes?” Lena asks Kara with a hint of mockery in her tone. 

“Yes, Miss Luthor. Kara Danvers would never do anything to hurt me. And I know there is no way she intended to betray you. She really trusts you, you know.” 

Lena sighs to herself. “I thought I did. But one more question: if Supergirl is supposedly infected with Kryptonite, why is she sitting across from me, right as rain?”

Kara wants to be angry, but the response, or really, lack of response from J’onn and Alex has her confused, as well. She was sure all of Lena’s hypothesizing about Kryptonite was off the mark. She knows what Kryptonite feels like. Whatever she’s supposedly infected with has to be something else. But the deafening silence from the DEO director and her sister has her questioning everything. 

“Actually, I would like to know the same thing, myself,” Kara says, turning to face them. 

J’onn remains silent, but Alex can’t bear to leave her sister confused like this. 

“It’s, um, a special kind of Kryptonite.” 

Lena waits for more, but when nothing comes, she presses Alex further. 

“The kind that doesn’t hurt? That seems rather antithetical to everything we know about the substance.” 

“It doesn’t necessarily _hurt_ , but it affects… other things.” 

Kara looks in disbelief at her sister. How could she keep this from her? How could she find out about a whole new strain of Kryptonite and not tell her? And what the heck were the other things she was referring to? 

“Al-Agent Danvers, what other things?” 

Alex stares at her hands, fidgeting. She owes the truth to Kara. It’s really the least she could do, at this point.

“It flips your sexual orientation.” There it is. That simple, flat statement freezes everyone for a moment. Kara just blinks. Lena stares into space, her mouth hanging open slightly. J’onn somehow becomes even more still. 

After a long pause, Lena manages to speak. 

“You’re telling me that you ordered an investigation because Supergirl is suddenly acting gay, and you’re worried I had something to do with it?” 

Alex drops her head in her hands. 

“It sounds so ridiculous when you put it like that. But any kind of Kryptonite, no matter what it does, it cause for alarm.”

“And how are you sure she’s not just, well, figuring herself out?”

“We don’t.” Alex glances over at Kara, who stares hard at the wall. “But we won’t know for sure until her tests come back. And if there was the slightest chance that you were synthesizing Kryptonite, we had to act immediately. It’s life or death, with Supergirl. You weren’t supposed to know the details. In fact, I’m not totally sure how you managed to get them at all.” 

Lena shrugs. 

“It’s a gift. Or rather, a curse, at the moment. Believe it or not, I’m not terribly interested in the bedroom habits of National City’s favorite superhero. But in spite of that, considering my involvement in this case, no matter how inadvertent, I would like to know what happens next.”

“Well,” says Alex, “Now we wait for the results. If they’re negative, we all breathe a sigh of relief and forget about this whole thing. If they’re positive, we get to work on a cure.” 

For the first time in minutes, without breaking her glare at the wall, Kara speaks. 

“ _No_.” 

“Sorry, Supergirl, what was that?” asks Alex.

“I said _no_. I’m not taking any cure.”

“Supergirl, we can talk about this later, if it even comes to that. Right now, we don’t even know–“ 

“ _I_ know. I know that I don’t care if I’m infected. I don’t want to know. I _like_ this version of me. Once we know that whoever’s behind the Kryptonite won’t be making any more, I don’t care if I’m like this forever. In fact, I hope I am.”

Alex moves closer to Kara, giving her a concerned look. 

“Supergirl, I know you’re upset right now, and I’m sorry to spring everything on you like this, but we just don’t know that much about this kind of Kryptonite, if it has long-term effects we haven’t discovered, if it– ”

“I don’t care. For the first time in my entire life, I feel like I’m the whole me. Like there are parts of me that I’ve just been hiding, that I’ve kept locked shut for so long, and there’s no way in hell I’m going back to the way things were.” Kara’s voice rises to shouting as she stands up and fixes her glare on Alex. “How could _you_ , of all people, expect me to do that? You’re supposed to want me to be happy. You know what it’s like to come to terms with your feelings, you know the relief, the joy that comes with that realization. How could you ask me to lose this part of myself again? No, I’m not doing it, not now, not now that I’ve felt these things, now that I know what life can be like, I just can’t, I just can’t, I just– How could I ever want to forget the way I feel about _her_?” Kara gestures to Lena, whose jaw drops. 

Lena looks to Supergirl, who turns away, then to Alex, who looks suitably shocked, before resting on J’onn. Finally, J’onn stirs from his frozen posture, walking over to Supergirl. He puts a hand on her shoulder and says something to her quietly. She shoves him away, hard, and he slams into the door. 

Kara turns a wild, tear-streaked face to him.

“How _dare_ you keep this from me! I trusted you, and all the while, you were rummaging around in my head, stealing the most personal, the most beautiful, the most painful memories whenever you wanted. That’s what happened today, right? At the briefing? You _knew_ I wasn’t just staring out the window, you _knew_ I was thinking about this morning with Lena, and instead of talking to me about it like a _normal person_ , you went behind my back, involved my sister, and the entire DEO, and had Lena hauled in here like common criminal! Do you have any idea what a massive breach of trust this is? I am _done_ with you, I am _done_ with your meddling. I’m not your lab rat. Now get _out_.” 

J’onn opens his mouth, chooses not to attempt a response, and does as he’s told. When the door closes, the echoes of Kara’s tirade fade, leaving silence. In her frenzy, she hadn’t thought about the words coming out of her mouth, but now, she gets the uneasy feeling that she messed up. Supergirl could have a crush on Lena, that’s believable. But she definitely slipped up somewhere. She just can’t say anything incriminating, in case Lena didn’t catch it, so maybe if she just plays it off like nothing happ–

“Kara,” says Lena, and it’s not a question. Alex looks at Lena, mouth open, searching for words to stop the inevitable. Nothing comes. When Kara doesn’t turn around, Lena continues, her voice soft and cautious. “It is you, under that cape, isn’t it?” Without turning, Kara nods, and her broad shoulders begin to shake. Lena hears a sniffle. The Girl of Steel wipes her nose on the sleeve of her uniform. 

Before Kara can even think of a response, J’onn pops his head back into the room. 

“I thought you all would like to know that our investigation of L-Corp revealed zero traces of Kryptonite, and that Kara’s results came back negative.” The collective glare of the three women forces him back outside. 

After an eternity, Alex speaks. 

“Well, that sucks.” 

Kara whips around to face Alex.

“Excuse me?” ask Kara and Lena in unison.

“No, no, no! It’s great that Lena didn’t poison you, it’s great that you’re not poisoned, but that means this entire fucking ordeal was essentially for nothing.” 

“I wouldn’t say that,” says Lena. “Of course, I don’t generally enjoy having my properties raided, but right now, everything makes more sense than it has in years.” 

Kara looks at her with intense curiosity.

“How can you say that? Everything is just a, a, giant mess, and it turns out everyone’s been _lying_ to me, and now you know _way_ more about everything than you were ever supposed to, and I ruined every–”

“Kara, I’m so sorry,” interrupts Lena as she stands and walks over to Kara. Her eyes, so full of concern and contrition, make Kara turn around again and shake her head before she can respond. 

“What on earth could you have to apologize to me for?”

Lena comes up behind Kara and puts a hand on her shoulder. Fleetingly, Lena remembers what happened to J’onn when tried that just minutes ago, but Kara lets it rest there. 

“Well, Kara, I did accuse you of revealing the whereabouts of my secret lab. Which, technically, I suppose you did, but given the circumstances, I completely understand. It’s only natural that you wouldn’t trust me, considering our family histories. I’m sorry for putting you in that position. You shouldn’t ever have to wonder if your friend is trying to kill you.”

Kara sniffles. 

“Lena, that’s nonsense. The way I trust you hasn’t changed. It never could. I’m the one who needs to apologize. I’ve been lying to my best friend for years.” Kara’s voice breaks and shoulders shake again. Lena slides in front of her, standing close. She cups Kara’s chin gently, and lifts it until Kara meets her gaze through tear-filled eyes.

“Kara, darling, I think we both have.” 

Alex lets out a breath she didn’t know she was holding, pushes her chair away from the table with a loud scrape, and is gone. The door clicks shut behind her. 

Lena and Kara stay like that for a long moment. Kara searches Lena’s light green-blue eyes for betrayal, hurt, anger, _something_ that would make sense. Instead, she sees worry, compassion, and, yes, love. Kara can’t quite believe it. This is not how she ever imagined this conversation playing out. She didn’t plan for this scenario. Before she can come up with her next move, Lena’s lips are on hers, gentle but firm. Kara has no idea what to do. All she can focus on is the softness of those lips, the warmth that emanates from the kiss and spreads through her entire body. In her surprise, Kara forgot to close her eyes, and when Lena opens hers again and pulls back, her eyebrows raise in concern. 

“Kara, I’m so sorry. I should’ve asked, I shouldn’t have just presumed. I’m sure you’re incredibly overwhelmed right now, and this is the last thing you need. I don’t do this, normally, and I don’t want to seem like I’m taking ad– ” Before Lena can finish the word, Kara pulls her back into herself, closer this time. Their bodies fit together perfectly, but neither of them can get close enough. Where the first kiss had been sweet, almost chaste, this one is deep and filled with hunger. When Kara realizes she needs to breathe, she pulls back, their foreheads touching, both panting slightly. 

“Why didn’t we do this sooner?” asks Kara.

“Well, darling, unless I heard wrong, I believe you only realized you like girls earlier today. And there was also a very real possibility that Kryptonite was the cause, so– ”

“I wish you’d just kissed me months ago, and we could’ve skipped all this,” says Kara with a sigh. 

“Believe me, I wanted to. You have no idea how badly I wanted to. Every day, every time I saw you, it took every ounce of willpower I had. And I have a _lot_ of willpower.” Lena smiles when Kara chuckles softly. “It really got rather out of hand. But I did try, you know.”

“You did?” 

“Please don’t tell me that even with superhearing you didn’t pick up on my flirting. You didn’t make it easy on me, you know.” 

Kara blushes and reaches for glasses that aren’t there. Lena laughs. “There, that’s what I’m talking about. That’s my Kara. How was I supposed to see _that_ every day, and not want to kiss you?” 

A dangerous smile quirks the corner of Kara’s mouth. 

“Well, there’s nothing stopping you now, is there?” 

. . . . .

Outside the briefing room, Alex stands guard. She leans against the wall, nodding at passing agents, checking her watch. _I’m giving them fifteen minutes, then I’m going in there. Well, I’m definitely knocking first. Although it would only be fair for me to walk in on her, for once. But ew. Nope. Nope, nope, nope. Fifteen minutes. That’s all you get, lil sis’._

Suddenly, J’onn turns the corner and reaches for the door handle before Alex firmly removes his grip.  
“Believe me, sir, you do _not_ want to go in there.” J’onn pauses a moment, tuning in to check on the inevitable fight raging inside and make sure neither women is in any real danger. Horror and panic seize his features as he shakes his head and practically runs back down the hall. Alex smirks. _Serves you right._


End file.
